TIMELINE: Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment
Metro Manila, Philippines - Sara Duterte could become the country’s first vice president to face an impeachment trial before the Senate, possibly answering several complaints and probes on her misuse of confidential funds and death threats against the president.
Calls for a probe on Duterte began after the revelation of her office’s anomalous ₱125-million secret fund spending in 2023.
Almost a year later, the majority of the House of Representatives’ members agreed to impeach Duterte. This led to the possible convening of the Senate as an impeachment court on June 11.
NewsWatch Plus compiles the key events from the tangled issues of Duterte’s historic impeachment case as it continues to unravel.
July 3, 2023
The Commission on Audit (COA) released its records covering the 2022 budget of the Office of the Vice President (OVP), showing that Duterte’s office spent ₱125 million on confidential funds in 19 days.
September 25, 2023
During a House plenary session discussing the national budget for 2024, COA corrected its initial report and said that the ₱125 million confidential funds spent by the OVP was disbursed only in 11 days.
October 10, 2023
The House announced that it will block the confidential fund requests of Duterte’s two offices for the 2024 national budget. This move cut ₱500 million from the OVP and ₱150 million from the Department of Education’s (DepEd) allocations.
November 16, 2023
Rumors of an impeachment plot against Duterte started to surface. Then ACT Teachers Partylist Rep. France Castro confirmed that she has heard of informal talks in the House about the possible impeachment.
June 19, 2024
Duterte resigned from the Marcos administration’s cabinet, stepping down as education secretary. She did not reveal the reason behind her decision.
July 11, 2024
Duterte faced public criticism after declaring herself as “designated survivor” when she explained why she would skip President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s third State of the Nation Address.
August 21, 2024
Rumors of an impeachment plan against Duterte resurfaced as deliberations for the 2025 national budget began. House leaders denied these claims, noting that an impeachment is a “waste of time” and would be “counterproductive” to the Congress’ priorities.
August 27, 2024
Duterte attended the House deliberations for the OVP’s proposed budget for 2025. Discussions heated up as the vice president refused to answer questions on the ₱125-million secret funds she spent from her office’s 2022 budget.
September 3, 2024
During a House plenary session, Manila 2nd District Rep. Rolando Valeriano slammed Duterte’s unwillingness to answer questions on the OVP’s anomalous spending.
September 10, 2024
Duterte snubbed the second House appropriations panel discussions for the OVP’s 2025 budget.
Instead, the vice president released a video statement claiming that House Speaker Martin Romualdez and House appropriations committee chair and Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co “controlled” the budget allocations.
September 18, 2024
The House committee on good government and public accountability launched a probe on Duterte’s alleged misuse of OVP and DepEd funds.
The Vice President attended the session but refused to take oath and accused House lawmakers of using the probe for an alleged impeachment plot.
September 23, 2024
Duterte skipped House deliberations on the OVP’s 2025 budget anew. The lower chamber moved to slash the office’s budget to only ₱733 million from its original ₱2 billion.
September 25, 2024
On the last day of budget deliberations, the House approved the slashed OVP funds for 2025 as Duterte was still a no show.
October 18, 2024
In a press briefing, Duterte revealed that she once told presidential sister Sen. Imee Marcos that she would exhume the grave of her father — the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos Sr. — and throw the body to the West Philippine Sea if supposed “political attacks” against her did not stop.
Duterte also admitted that she daydreams of beheading the incumbent president.
November 23, 2024
During a sudden late night briefing, Duterte admitted that she ordered a hit against Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and Romualdez if she is murdered.
This prompted an alert at the Palace. Security officials called Duterte’s statement an active threat against the president.
November 25, 2024
In the House investigation on the misuse of confidential funds, former DepEd executives admitted to receiving multiple envelopes with cash during Duterte's term as education secretary.
November 26, 2024
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) issued a subpoena against Duterte, summoning her for the “kill” remarks against Marcos, his wife, and Romualdez.
November 28, 2024
Duterte skipped the NBI probe. Her camp asked the bureau to reschedule the vice president’s appearance to Dec. 11 and requested for more time to prepare.
November 29, 2024
Marcos opposed plans for Duterte’s impeachment, urging lawmakers not to file a complaint as proceedings “would not benefit the Filipino people.”
December 2, 2024
Multi-sectoral groups filed the first impeachment complaint against Duterte. Akbayan party-list Rep. Perci Cendaña endorsed the complaint, citing as offenses “abuse of power and plunder of the nation’s coffers.”
December 4, 2024
The second impeachment complaint against Duterte was filed at the House. About 70 people from a number of groups cited betrayal of public trust over Duterte’s misuse of secret funds.
December 9, 2024
The NBI issued a new subpoena against Duterte, granting her request to move her appearance for the probe of her “kill” threat against Marcos to Dec. 11.
December 11, 2024
The 19th Congress bicameral committee retained the OVP’s slashed budget for 2025.
On the same day, Duterte skipped the NBI probe on her “kill” threat against Marcos anew.
December 19, 2024
Members of the clergy and some civil society groups filed the third impeachment complaint against Duterte at the House.
December 25, 2024
Duterte announced that her father, ex-President Rodrigo Duterte, will be joining her legal team for the impeachment complaints.
January 13, 2025
NBI completed its probe on Duterte’s threat against the president despite the vice president not showing up for any of the bureau’s summons.
February 5, 2025
The House impeached Duterte with 215 signatories. The Senate received the complaint in the same afternoon and adjourned without discussing the articles of impeachment.
February 6, 2025
The House said 25 more lawmakers, who were not present during the previous day’s session, were added to signatories for Duterte’s impeachment.
Presidential son and Ilocos Rep. Sandro Marcos confirmed that he was first to sign, citing Duterte’s kill threat against his parents and her previous remark of exhuming his late grandfather’s grave.
February 19, 2025
Duterte asked the Supreme Court to block the basis of her looming impeachment trial on constitutional grounds. Supporters of the vice president also filed a separate petition on the same grounds.
February 24, 2025
A letter from Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero states that the beginning of the impeachment process is set for June 2 where articles of Impeachment will be read on the first day of the resumption of sessions.
May 29, 2025
Escudero postponed the highly anticipated convening of the Senate as an impeachment court for Duterte’s trial to June 11.
If the Senate does push through with the impeachment process, the House prosecutors will be presenting the articles of impeachment during the last session day of the 19th Congress.
For her part, Duterte said she is “at peace” with whatever outcome may arise from the impeachment process and said she sees the proceedings as "an opportunity to clear her name."
This is a developing story.
